A 360 Ultrasonic Inspections for Pipelines

18 Aug 2024 Download PDF

This second blog in our pipeline inspection series details the available ultrasonic inspection solutions for many pipeline region of interest and its safety-critical areas. The previous blog (<- insert link) (A 101 Pipeline Integrity Guide for NDT Specialists) covered the general areas of interest where NDT should be applied when a routine check, failure analysis review, maintenance review or complete asset study is required. We also mentioned the extra difficulties surrounding specific pipeline regions of interest. This blog focuses on ultrasound techniques for which Sonatest provide inspection solutions for pipeline owners to utilise reliable and advanced ultrasound methods and equipment.

 

Ultrasound Covers Many Inspection Areas

As with the previous blog (ßsame link again), we will cover the two-outside diameter (OD) and inside diameter (ID) surface access situations where ultrasound is commonly employed. The blog will not cover all pipeline inspection cases, but most current technologies are included.

 

Note: Insulation on pipelines does not allow for the transmission of sound to the pipe below; this means for ultrasonic methods to be utilised, the insulation must be removed in the areas of interest. Alternatively, internal scanning methods such as pig crawlers can be used, or guided wave systems can be set at strategic points along the line, allowing for minimal insulation removal and screening of the pipe under the insulation.

 

General PA-UT Methods

The following section contains the OD scenario and the ID examinations. For each case (where applicable), there is an example of conventional UT, PA Inspection, TFM or even a corrosion map rendering for much better visualisation.  BeamTool (Scan Plan) and CIVA Analysis (Sonatest Compatible Advanced Analysis software) were used to build this table below.

 

Corrosion Mapping - Conventional UT

0° Manual UT – Spot Reading Grid Method

 

0° Manual UT – 100% Manual Scanning Method of an Area

 

Corrosion Mapping -   0° L-scan/TFM

 

Manual Inspection (Not Encoded) Scanning

 

Example of a circumferential PA Scan corrosion survey that creates large C-scan data. The photo below is a 128E WP2

 

Automated/Semi-automated Scans: PA L-scan/UT/LL TFM Carried out with Crawler Scanners.

 

Constant Monitoring -  Belt or Single Point

Single/Multiple Point(s) Constantly Being Monitored on Pipelines (Can Be Positioned Under Insulation)

 

Elbow Mapping -  Flex Probe, WheelProbe or Conventional UT

 

0° Manual UT – Spot Reading Grid

 

UT Automated Grid with Augmented Reality (AR) Lens

 

PA Using a Flexible or Wheel Probe Array

 

 

Flange Face Corrosion Inspection (Inner ROI) -   In-service, Using Phased-Array

 

PA or TFM can be achieved around the flange. A bolt can reduce the region of interest access. The inspection procedure is always challenging and amended accordingly because there are many flange profiles in the field.  

(Images and data courtesy of Ensonify)

 

 

Flange Inspection (Bolts) -  Phased Array

PA and/or TFM Bolt Scanning

New Infallible Option: Slim Bolt Scanner (By a Valve or 2 Side-by-side Flanges)

 

Our Wide Bolt Scanner Offer Depending on the Bolt Size Requirement and Height Clearance

 

 

Nozzle Inspection -  Conventional UT

A-Scan with an Imported Nozzle Geometry for a Reliable Flaw and Geometry Echo Location

 

Nozzle Inspection. -   Phased Array

Sectorial and/or Linear Scan with B-Scan and C-Scan (End and Top Scan Views)

 

PA inspection with folded S-scan and rotated around the nozzle

 

 

Butt Welds. -  Conventional UT and Phased Array

 

A-Scan with an Interactive Scan Plan; A Live A-scan Is Displayed in the Butt Weld Geometry

Sectorial and/or Linear Scan. This Ultrasound Solution Can Run Both the PA S-scan and TFMiTM (TT+TTT+TTTT)in Parallel

Special Cases OD Surface Corrosion under Pipes Support

PA-CATTM - Remaining Wall of External Piping Assessment, Underneath Saddle Supports on Vessels – PA Pitch-catch S-scan with Post-analysis Profile Extraction  Only the Rx probe is shown above.

 

 

Internal Corrosion Mapping Inspection UT or PA probe for medium/large diameters

Internal Scanners Better Suit Diameters Around 2 to 6 Inches. (TSIS Scanner Below) For phased array inspections, we recommend a linear array and a motorised crawler like the following Jireh TERAX crawler.

Corrosion Mapping Curved ID Linear Array

Special curved 19-inch AOD array design for ID inspection. Irrigation and encoder are included in that solution.

We would like to thank our partners to help us creating this blog content. All our partners are valuable to Sonatest and this is why we will order them in alphabetical order:

Please contact applications@sonatest.com if you have any questions regarding the solutions above. You can also find more of our solutions through our website search function.
 

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